الرئيسية
A teenage monk set himself on fire to protest China's rule in the nation's southwest, exile groups said Tuesday, as police in Washington arrested Tibet activists during a visit by China's vice president.
The 19-year-old Tibetan Buddhist monk, identified as Lobsang Gyatso, set himself ablaze on Monday in Sichuan province's restive Aba county, the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) and Free Tibet said.
The Washington-based ICT
said police violently beat the monk as they extinguished the flames,
before taking him into custody. It was not immediately clear whether he
survived.
He was a monk at Aba's Kirti monastery, a leading
Tibetan Buddhist institution that has been the scene of repeated
protests by Tibetans against what they say is religious and cultural
repression by Beijing.
At least 20 Tibetans have set fire to
themselves in the past year to protest what they see as a lack of rights
under Chinese rule, leading Beijing to impose virtual martial law, according to residents and exiled groups.
The 19-year-old Tibetan Buddhist monk, identified as Lobsang Gyatso, set himself ablaze on Monday in Sichuan province's restive Aba county, the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) and Free Tibet said.
The Washington-based ICT
said police violently beat the monk as they extinguished the flames,
before taking him into custody. It was not immediately clear whether he
survived.
He was a monk at Aba's Kirti monastery, a leading
Tibetan Buddhist institution that has been the scene of repeated
protests by Tibetans against what they say is religious and cultural
repression by Beijing.
At least 20 Tibetans have set fire to
themselves in the past year to protest what they see as a lack of rights
under Chinese rule, leading Beijing to impose virtual martial law, according to residents and exiled groups.